Struggling Readers

Let’s start with the good news. You have emerging readers with Visual Impairment who have learned the meaning of tactile name symbols for people in their lives. The bad news? You are considering crossing that skill off your list of “Things...

Many teachers, therapists, and parents have questions about identifying learning disabilities in students who are blind or visually impaired. When a student has difficulty completing an assignment, it is often hard to know if the challenge is due...

When I first started working as a TVI, I was under the impression that my students would want to work with me -- just like I wanted to work for my teachers when I was growing up. The first braille learner student I worked with was a dual-media student who...

Cooking is a great way to incorporate all areas of the curriculum in a motivating, practical activity or series of activities. Literacy (recipes in large print, braille, or audio), math (showing the real-world application of counting, adding and...

Maria is a second grader who currently uses braille for most of her learning, but supplements the materials with audiotapes. She was quite successful in first grade and was often complimented on her amazing memory. Maria could often quote stories...

I am a mother of two sweet boys. My oldest, Liam, is 6 years old. He is deafblind. My youngest, Finn, is 3 years old. He has typical vision and hearing. I really look forward to the Christmas season. I enjoy finding...

When people think dyslexia, they think vision problems. Dyslexics see letters and numbers backwards if they can read at all. That’s the common thought, but only one aspect of dyslexia. Dyslexia is a reading disorder, not a seeing...

I am currently working with a child who has decreased sensitivity. Below are a few suggestions. I try to keep each activity to five minutes or less and provide lots of praise.
First I had the OT do a sensitivity test and she was able to...

As an itinerant TVI/COMS for a multi-district special education unit, it can be difficult to provide quality professional development for teachers specifically for students with visual impairments. One area that I felt was necessary to provide training for...

A member of our community asked if we had any activities or resources for teaching braille mechanics to students with Cerebral Palsy (CP) or decreased tactile sensitivity. We have included tips for both reading and writing braille. There are many...

The holidays are an exciting time of year for children and there are lots of opportunities to incorporate literacy into the fun! The ideas here include suggestions to make Christmas and Hanukkah more accessible to children with visual impairments or...

This is the first of five parts created by Low Vision Therapist, Dr. Roxana Elena Cziker, focusing on the needs of students with Cerebral Visual Impairment (CVI) The series is designed to address challenges for children with CVI who...

A Swing Cell is designed to help students understand the relationship between the braille cell and the keys on a braillewriter. In the closed position, the removable pegs inserted into the blocks represent the dots in a braille cell. In the open position, the...

This post will specifically discuss braille instruction strategies for students with multiple impairments or intellectual disabilities.
We are assuming that you have done pre-braille activities up to this point. Examples of tools and resources for the pre...

It’s that time of the year again! The start of a new school year always brings a range of emotions: excitement, worry, anticipation, wistfulness to say goodbye to summer… We hope that these ideas and resources will help to get the...

My son Liam is 7 years old and will be starting 2nd grade this school year. He is deafblind, uses tactile American Sign Language and is a braille reader.
I love Tack-Tiles. I have often been asked how we used Tack-Tiles...

How many of us serve students who have both a severe visual impairment and multiple disabilities, including intellectual disabilities? How many of us have attempted literacy instruction or braille with this population of students? And, if you have, how...

By Holly Cooper, Ph.D., Early Childhood Specialist, Texas Deafblind Project, Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired
Approaches to Literacy Experiences for Infants
When should braille be introduced in books?...

Creating a holistic approach based on a theme or story enables children who are visually impaired to access and enjoy literacy and numeracy activities in a meaningful way.
The film "Frozen" has been tremendously popular...

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